Northside will hold its eleventh annual Declaration of Respect Signing Day on Friday, Oct. 7, with students and staff across the District signing certificates pledging to demonstrate respect for themselves and all others through their interactions at school.
Students and staff at Folks Middle School recognized the day with a school-wide announcement by the principal on the importance of respect. They followed up by signing classroom declarations pledging to respect themselves and others, refrain from bullying, and promoting a safe and bully-free school environment.
During 6th grade Advisory, 7th grade History, and 8th grade Communication Apps/MAPS, and AVID classes, students at Ross Middle School discussed the importance to make a commitment to respect themselves and others through their interactions. They signed pledges to be trustworthy, fair, responsible, respectful, and a caring community who refrains from bullying others.
October is National Bullying Prevention Awareness Month and Respect Signing Day is a reminder to the community that the District is committed to providing students and staff a safe and respectful environment.
“We take bullying very seriously in Northside ISD,” said Superintendent Dr. Woods, who signed a similar pledge with all seven Board members at their Sept. 27 Board meeting. “This District-wide effort, of students and staff members from kindergarten through 12th grade, is our attempt to make everyone aware of the seriousness of bullying, and the life altering damage that can occur.”
NISD has implemented many programs to address the needs of students, including classroom guidance lessons delivered by the school counselor, anti-bullying classroom presentations, campus-wide initiatives such as the Kindness Clubs, “No Bully Zone, Project ABC (antibullying communities) at the secondary level, and community involvement activities.
At the District level, the phone and texting Safeline program (397-SAFE and safe@nisd.
net) offers a safe way for students (and the community) to report potential incidents. Also the Parent 411 online training module for preventing bullying, cyber-bullying, and dating violence is available for parents and educators.
To educate yourself and help in the prevention of bullying on our campuses, visit the NISD Counseling website.